Big things expected from Black Knights

WEST POINT — Coach Joe Sottolano likes his young Army baseball team and believes the Black Knights will be pretty good. The big question is when.

Ken McMillan

WEST POINT — Coach Joe Sottolano likes his young Army baseball team and believes the Black Knights will be pretty good. The big question is when.

Four position starters and one starting pitcher were among the eight players who graduated. Sottolano will turn to some reserves and a couple rookies to fill the void on a team that has 15 freshmen and 10 sophomores on the 35-man roster.

"I'm not negative with this group at all,'' said Sottolano, who has proven success with freshmen. "I like its ability, its athleticism. ... It will pay a lot of dividends in time. We just have to be patient with it. Time is an open-ended question. It's difficult to determine what time that is going to be. Is it two weeks, a month, two months or two years? I don't know what that time is yet.''

The coaches in the Patriot League believe the time is now, making Army the favorite to repeat as champion. The Black Knights won 41 games last season, captured the league playoff title and reached the NCAA tournament for the fifth time.

Senior Chris Rowley and sophomore Alex Robinett will reprise their starting pitcher roles. Rowley was 11-1 with six complete games out of 15 starts and a 2.40 ERA. Robinett was 3-1 with a 2.73 ERA in nine starts. Closer Gunnar Carroll (2-1, 8 saves, 2.48) will get a shot at starting, and could return to his former role depending on the team's needs.

Sophomores Andrew Flaherty and Brian Hapeman will vie for starting spots. Five freshmen also will challenge for time.

Harold Earls (.341, 22 RBI), a freshman all-American, will be able to use his good feet as he moves from third base to second to accommodate promising freshman Grant Van Orden at the hot corner — Sottolano believes he is one of his best infield recruits. Alex Jensen (.264, 23 RBI) will start at shortstop again. Soft-handed Patrick Mescher (.192 in 21 games) will replace Kevin McKague at first base. Andrew Johnson (.291 in 23 games) and Connor Love (.094 in 16 games) may split time at catcher at the outset.

Danny Cortez (.273, 23 RBI) is the lone returning outfielder in left and will move from the No. 2 batting spot to leadoff. Dakari Cooke (.264 in 23 games) will start in center, backed up by promising strong freshman Jacob Page. Mike Sands (.241 in 11 games) is battling for time in right, along with Page. Mark McCants (.246, 28 RBI) will serve as designated hitter again.

Army returns only two home runs to its lineup, but Sottolano is confident the Black Knights have sufficient gap power. The team stole 109 bases last season, and Sottolano expects Army will have to do the same to manufacture runs.

"We have to find an edge and take advantage of the opportunities that are presented to us,'' Sottolano said. "This will be a team that will really have to be steady through the lineup, and the pitchers will have to work down in the zone, get a lot of groundballs and limit the extra-base hits.''

Army opens the season this week with three games at North Carolina-Greensboro. On March 30, the Yankees will visit Doubleday Field for an exhibition, one day before the Patriot League opening series against Navy. Holy Cross also visits West Point. Army hits the road for league sets against Lehigh, Lafayette and Bucknell.

"It is a hard-working group,'' Sottolano said. "They believe they can win — that is a huge part of it.''